The Stranger is my first exposure to Camus, and it's one I really enjoyed. Very quick read – I think I burned through it in about a day and a half. Despite its length though it definitely packed quite a punch for me. I haven't really looked at a lot of discussion on the book and just wanted to see people's thoughts on it.
To me, the whole thing kind of felt like an off-kilter fever dream. Meursault is such a closed-off and emotionally reserved (stunted maybe?) character that it really leads to the narrative feeling very detached and clinical. It always seems like it's just on the verge of some kind of emotional release, but then it pulls back. This was most evident to me during the beach sequence, when Meursault decides to just fucking light up the Arab. The whole sequence with the oppressive heat bearing down on him and inching him closer to some kind of mental breakdown that never quite comes. Same thing during the court hearings, seems like Meursault is almost about to feel something or judge himself or something, but it never quite manifests.
I'm trying to decide exactly what Camus is trying to portray. Is it a character study of an emotionally dead individual who forgot how to feel and just can't be bothered anymore? Or is there some cultural/societal commentary I'm missing? Perhaps he's this way because of the society he lives in? He seems to see the people and the world around him at a remove, not feeling any particular way about anything. He even tells Marie that saying I love you has no meaning.
Or is it the fact that the only way to deal with a crazy world is to completely close yourself off from it, so you don't have to experience the pain and suffering that it brings?
Would love to hear more thoughts and interpretations.
by Monkey-on-the-couch
1 Comment
Meesault’s detachment from society, those around him, and the consequences of his actions is kind of the point. He is showing standard traits of an existentialist and also Absurdist (which Camus was a proponent of).
Existentialism states that one is free and that only the individual is responsible for their own development through acts of will (i.e. when he just straight up smokes the Arab). Absurdism is a concept which dictates that one (or rather all of us) live in purposeless and chaotic universe (which I think is ironically rather absurd. Purpose is what you want it to be and each individual’s purpose is different from another person’s). You should read Camus’ essay titled *The Myth of Sisyphus* to gain further insight into Absurdism.